At Home: A Short History of Private Life

Bill Bryson was struck one day by the thought that we devote more time to studying the battles and wars of history than to considering what history really consists of: centuries of people quietly going about their daily business. This inspired him to start a journey around his own house, an old rectory in Norfolk, considering how the ordinary things in life came to be.

Bill Bryson's Appliance of Science: An Audible Original

In this feast of invention and discovery, Bill Bryson, with the help of The Science Museum's curators, takes us object by object through some of the museum's less well known inventions and discoveries and the human stories behind them. Discover how a teenage inventor, a pig's head, a lump of plywood and a famous British record label made medical history or how some inventions simply happen by accident.

Neither Here nor There

In Neither Here nor There Bill Bryson brings his unique brand of humour to bear on Europe as he shoulders his backpack, keeps a tight hold on his wallet, and journeys from Hammerfest, the northernmost town on the continent, to Istanbul on the cusp of Asia.

The Life & Times of the Thunderbolt Kid

Bill Bryson's hilarious memoir of growing up in middle America in the Fifties, complete, unabridged and read by the author. Born in 1951 in the middle of the United States, Des Moines, Iowa, Bill Bryson is perfectly positioned to mine his memories of a totally all-American childhood for 24 carat memoir gold.

Down Under

Australia has more things that can kill you than anywhere else. Nevertheless, Bill Bryson journeyed to the country and promptly fell in love with it. The people are cheerful, their cities are clean, the beer is cold, and the sun nearly always shines.

Made in America

In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land, explaining how a dusty hamlet with neither woods nor holly became Hollywood, how the Wild West wasn't won, why Americans say 'lootenant' and 'Toosday', how Americans were eating junk food long before the word itself was cooked up, as well as exposing the true origins of the G-string, the original $64,000 question, and Dr Kellogg of cornflakes fame.

The Lost Continent: Travels In Small Town America

Hardly anyone ever leaves Des Moines, Iowa. But Bill Bryson did, and after 10 years in England he decided to go home, to a foreign country. In an ageing Chevrolet Chevette, he drove nearly 14,000 miles through 38 states to compile this hilarious and perceptive state-of-the-nation report on small-town America.

Notes From a Big Country

After moving back to the States, Bryson started to write a column for The Mail on Sunday Night and Day magazine. This is a collection of these column entries. Bryson writes about everything from everyday chores, to suing people, the beach, TV, movies, air conditioners, college, Americana, injury dangers, wasting resources, and holiday seasons.

Notes From a Small Island

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson, the acclaimed author of such best sellers as The Mother Tongue and Made in America, decided it was time to move back to the United States for a while. This was partly to let his wife and kids experience life in Bryson's homeland, and partly because he had read that 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another. It was thus clear to him that his people needed him.

A Walk in the Woods

The Appalachian Trail covers 14 states and over 2,000 miles, snaking through some of the most spectacular landscapes in America. Reluctant adventurer Bryson recounts his gruelling hike along the longest continuous footpath in the world.

The Road to Little Dribbling: More Notes From a Small Island

Twenty years ago Bill Bryson went on a trip around Britain to celebrate the green and kindly island that had become his adopted country. The hilarious book that resulted, Notes from a Small Island, was taken to the nation’s heart and became the best-selling travel book ever and was voted in a BBC poll the book that best represents Britain. Now, to mark the 20th anniversary of that modern classic, Bryson makes a brand-new journey around Britain to see what has changed.

The Reluctant Hermit says:"I think Bill would rather have stayed at home."

Shakespeare: The World as a Stage

Shakespeare's life, despite the scrutiny of generations of biographers and scholars, is still a thicket of myths and traditions, some preposterous, some conflicting, arranged around the few scant facts known about the Bard: from his birth in Stratford to the bequest of his second best bed to his wife when he died.

Fascinating Footnotes from History

Fascinating Footnotes From History details 100 of the quirkiest historical nuggets - eye-stretching stories that sound like fiction but are 100 percent fact. There is Hiroo Onoda, the lone Japanese soldier still fighting the Second World War in 1974; Agatha Christie, who mysteriously disappeared for 11 days in 1926; and Werner Franz, a cabin boy on the Hindenburg who lived to tell the tale when it was engulfed in flames in 1937.

Centuries of Change

In a contest of change, which century from the past millennium would come up trumps? Imagine the Black Death took on the female vote in a pub brawl, or the Industrial Revolution faced the Internet in a medieval joust - whose side would you be on? In this hugely entertaining book, celebrated historian Ian Mortimer takes us on a whirlwind tour of Western history, pitting one century against another in his quest to measure change.

The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century

Imagine you could travel back to the 14th century. What would you see? What would you smell? More to the point, where are you going to stay? And what are you going to eat? Ian Mortimer shows us that the past is not just something to be studied; it is also something to be lived. He sets out to explain what life was like in the most immediate way, through taking you to the Middle Ages. The result is the most astonishing social history book you are ever likely to read: evolutionary in its concept, informative and entertaining in its detail.

Journeys in English

This highly entertaining BBC Radio 4 series is written and presented by Bill Bryson and based on his best-selling book, Mother Tongue. In it, he romps through the history of Britain to reveal how English became such an infuriatingly complex - but ultimately world-beating - language.

A Short History of Nearly Everything

A Short History of Nearly Everything is Bill Bryson's fascinating and humorous quest to understand everything that has happened from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization. He takes subjects that normally bore the pants off most of us, like geology, chemistry, and particle physics, and aims to render them comprehensible to people who have never thought they could be interested in science. In the company of some extraordinary scientists, Bill Bryson reveals the world in a way most of us have never seen it before.

Going Off Alarming: The Autobiography: Vol 2

Danny Baker's first volume of autobiography, Going to Sea in a Sieve, was a Sunday Times best seller, acclaimed for its nonstop humour and anecdotal flourish. It told the exploits of Danny's extraordinary childhood and the wild living of his teenage years. Now he is 25, and it is 1982, and he embarks on an accidental and anxiety-induced career in television - going off alarming.

Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage

In August of 1914, the British ship Endurance set sail for the South Atlantic. In October, 1915, still half a continent away from its intended base, the ship was trapped, then crushed in the ice. For five months, Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men, drifting on ice packs, were castaways in one of the most savage regions of the world.

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

The Mongol army led by Genghis Khan subjugated more lands and people in 25 years than the Romans did in 400. In nearly every country the Mongols conquered, they brought an unprecedented rise in cultural communication, expanded trade, and a blossoming of civilization.

The Dark Tourist: Sightseeing in the World's Most Unlikely Holiday Destinations

Ever since he can remember, Dom Joly has been fascinated by travel to odd places. In part this stems from a childhood spent in war-torn Lebanon, where instead of swapping marbles in the schoolyard, he had a shrapnel collection -- the schoolboy currency of Beirut. These early experiences left Dom with a profound loathing for the sanitized experiences of the modern-day travel industry and a taste for the darkest of places.

A People's History of the World: From the Stone Age to the New Millennium

Chris Harman describes the shape and course of human history as a narrative of ordinary people forming and re-forming complex societies in pursuit of common human goals. Interacting with the forces of technological change as well as the impact of powerful individuals and revolutionary ideas, these societies have engendered events familiar to every schoolchild-from the empires of antiquity to the world wars of the 20th century. In a bravura conclusion, Chris Harman exposes the reductive complacency of contemporary capitalism.

Napoleon the Great

Napoleon Bonaparte lived one of the most extraordinary of all human lives. In the space of just 20 years, from October 1795, when as a young artillery captain he cleared the streets of Paris of insurrectionists, to his final defeat at the (horribly mismanaged) battle of Waterloo in June 1815, Napoleon transformed France and Europe. After seizing power in a coup d'état, he ended the corruption and incompetence into which the revolution had descended.

Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection

Ever since he made his first appearance in A Study In Scarlet, Sherlock Holmes has enthralled and delighted millions of fans throughout the world. Now Audible is proud to present Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection, read by Stephen Fry. A lifelong fan of Doyle's detective fiction, Fry has narrated the complete works of Sherlock Holmes - four novels and five collections of short stories.

Audible Editor Reviews

Award-winning and highly acclaimed author Bill Bryson delivers a captivating performance in his narration of his novel One Summer: America 1927. Bryson's deeply researched novel captures the importance of unconnected events in the American summer of 1927 that became significant milestones in modern history. This complete and unabridged historical audiobook from Audible Studios delves into this summer at many angles - from seeing the face of aviation and international travel change forever, to the booming peak for those living blissfully unaware of the dawn of the Great Depression that would soon be upon them all. Available now from Audible.

Publisher's Summary

Audible is proud to present One Summer: America, 1927, the new book by Britain’s favourite writer of narrative nonfiction, Bill Bryson.

Narrated by the man himself, One Summer takes you to the summer when America came of age, took centre stage, and changed the world forever. In the summer of 1927, America had a booming stock market, a president who worked just four hours a day, a semi-crazed sculptor with a plan to carve four giant heads into a mountain called Rushmore, a devastating flood of the Mississippi, a sensational murder trial, and a youthful aviator named Charles Lindbergh who started the summer wholly unknown, and finished it as the most famous man on Earth.

It was the summer of the first talking pictures, the invention of television, the peak of Al Capone's reign of terror, the ill-conceived decision that led to the Great Depression, and the thrillingly improbable return to greatness of a wheezing, over-the-hill baseball player named Babe Ruth.

With an unforgettable cast of personalities, Bill Bryson spins a story of brawling adventure, reckless optimism, and delirious energy. What a country; what a summer; and what a writer to bring it all so vividly to life.

Bill Bryson was born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951; he moved to and settled in England in 1977, working in journalism until becoming a full-time author. Bryson is much-loved for his best-selling travel books, from The Lost Continent to Down Under, and Notes from a Small Island earned a particularly special place in the nation's heart - a national poll for World Book Day voted it the book that best represents Britain. A Short History of Nearly Everything won the Aventis Prize for Science Books and the Descartes Science Communication Prize. Bryson has also written a memoir, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, and acclaimed books on language and social history (Mother Tongue, Made in America, At Home).

He lives in the UK with his wife and family, and was awarded an honorary OBE for services to literature.

I've long been a fan of Bill Bryson's books and this latest release continues to raise the bar on his fellow writers. At once engaging and informative Bryson connects with the listener from the outset and the pace never flags. With characters such as Babe Ruth, Al Capone, Woodrow Wilson, Jack Dempsey and, of course, Charles Lindburgh the narrative guides the listener through what was a golden time in America's history.

The book looks at a wealth of topics from aviation, sport, politics, prohibition and the rise of the movies. I was particularly interested in the sections about the Anarchists who sent parcel bombs to leading political and authority figures. One failed to go off so the police thought it would be a good idea to take it back to the station for further investigation, where it promptly exploded, killing ten officers and some members of the public.

An excellent,informative book and like all of Bryson's work, worthy of repeated listenings. I almost wish I had a road trip coming up as this would be the perfect accompaniment

Bill Bryson has a clever way of making everything interesting. Even subjects I'm not normally bothered about. He has a fantastic dry wit and an entertaining way of putting things across. He's one of those rare authors I'd actually like to meet and have a cuppa with. Also, I normally hate it when the author reads their own work, but I must say I enjoy his laid-back tone and his unique accent - USA/UK. Well done, Bill. Great work. Can't wait to see what you've got to show us next.

I’ve greatly enjoyed previous books by the author and was looking forward to another treat. The early chapters made me think I was in for a 5 star listen, however as the book progressed I found that there was far too much about baseball the nadir of which was at least an hour of the recording devoted to performance statistics of baseball players of the 1920s. After yet another lengthy, tedious section about baseball, I thereafter fast-forwarded the recording when he started on the topic yet again until the subject changed. I had to do this several times. Why Bill Byrson thought that most of his readers/listeners would be interested in the fine details of baseball games played in the 1920s is beyond me. I found the other topics in the book, that were tied in time to the summer of 1927, interesting, but I was disappointed by the book. I also felt that it lacked the wry humour that enlivens his other books.

The author’s narration is competent with out being memorable, but the periods of boredom may have given me a jaundiced view.

Bryson's ability to turn up the most unusual facts and stories and combine them into a portrait of a nation. It gives a detailed snapshot of the landscape, the people their lives and the changes their society was undergoing. Bryso's research has allowed him to deflty draws them into a collection of threads that come together into a vivid sense of what America was in 1927.

What other book might you compare One Summer to, and why?

This is similar to Bryson's other non-fiction books - A Walk in the Woods and a Short History of Nearly Everything in that we are presented with Bryson's amiable wandering through a subject. However this isn't about him as such, it's a reflection of what he was interested in his subject.

What about Bill Bryson’s performance did you like?

The clear animation in his voice - at times you could hear him smiling as he read or shaking his head in disbelief with you. Bryson enjoys a relaxed easy style that eats up the hours and is the perfect accompaniment to a long drive, cooking a meal or doing the washing up.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Could you film this? Better to imagine it I think - let it live in your mind's eye.

Any additional comments?

The only reason I deducted 1 star from the overall score was that in a very few places it probably paid to actually be an American (understanding baseball in detail and the odd reference). However do not let this put you off the wonderfully animated journey the book takes you on. I laughed out loud several times while listening - even when commuting on the train.

Yes. This is a cornucopia of loosely connected facts most unfamiliar to an English audience. At last baseball is interesting, the aviation air races understandable and prohibition America now seen in a context where it (almost) makes sense. It was all fascinating.

Which character – as performed by Bill Bryson – was your favourite?

Babe Ruth

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Prohibition America as it really was.

Any additional comments?

It took a minute or two to tune into Bill's voice but his reading was wonderful.

Bill Bryson is a very fine author......he is not a professional narrator. I found his voice to be thin and without the required authority and expression of a trained actor or experienced reader. A very good book lacking a very good narrator!

Great to hear Bill Bryson read his own work, the content as always with him teaches you things you didn't know about events or places you thought you knew. Has made a drive to Nuremberg from the UK a pleasure, looking forward to the second half on the return leg!

Bryson has selected a period of about six months (April to September) in one year (1927) when the most remarkable events and people in the USA intersected. He is a master story teller and traces the history and personalities of his “actors” without ever reverting to a catalogue of dates or achievements.

It was one heck of a year: Babe Ruth, Charles Lindbergh, Herbert Hoover, Al Capone, Talking pictures, prohibition, Saco and Vanzetti, Mount Rushmore and a handful or murderers all had their moment in the sun – and this is not a complete list. It was a perfect moment in time - after the war and before the depression. It was an instant when the height of 1920s excess clashed with the depths of conservative USA reaction. All in all, a remarkable year.

Bryson revels in this type of book – he dredges up little-known facts and sketches his characters as larger-than-life figures (or not). The “story” never lags and his sense of hyperbole keeps the reader riveted. How about this as a sample of the irrelevant but interesting snippets which litter to book: The morning after Lindbergh’s triumphant landing in Paris the authorities collected over a ton of lost property at the airfield (following the frenzied reception by the French). There are many more. Some of the actions, decisions and statements are almost inconceivable. The fact, for example, that Al Capone paid wages of almost $700,000 every week – to crooked cops in Chicago.

I guess there were other summers which held as many significant occurrences (probably very few) but I wonder if it is an accident that exactly 40 years later the summer of love would again yield a treasure trove of events and personalities. I’m hoping Bryson is busy on this book already: 1967 Another Summer.

I really wish publishers would stop using authors to read books. I have said this so often. Bill is a great writer and he is one of my favourites. His diction is poor and his reading style is rushed and unprofessional. PLEASE USE ACTORS to read and writers to write.

Would you consider the audio edition of One Summer to be better than the print version?

Yes, Brysons dry narration is always a joy

Would you be willing to try another book from Bill Bryson? Why or why not?

I already own all of them

Have you listened to any of Bill Bryson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Exactly the same as usual - if you like Bryson this is a definite buy.. but if you dont then avoid it!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There are moments of history that are extremely saddening, and Bryson gives his perspective. However most of the book is humorous to laugh out loud.

It's collection of happenings and events that are loosely tied around one theme - the summer of 1927. It's like having him round for dinner and saying.. tell us a story or two Bill.

Any additional comments?

TOO MUCH BASEBALL! I know his Dad was a baseball reporter and Im sure its a fab sport but wayyy too much coverage in this book

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Joseph

Australia

17/10/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"A remarkable year. Or was it?"

The Summer of 1927 in America was a remarkable time. Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic alone in a tiny plane and set off a hero-worship frenzy. Not just in the USA but across the globe. Television was born and Radio exploded. As did bombs set off by anarchists across the country. Criminals were electrocuted and Prohibition made other criminals rich. Bill Bryson tells this story in his unique style; finding the coincidences the curiosities and the connections that bring it all together in a way that is fascinating and at times, laugh-out-loud funny.

It was a remarkable year. But then I think Bill Bryson could throw a dart at a calendar, hitting any season in any year in any country, and turn it into a compelling story.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

David

Woonona, Australia

29/09/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Bill Bryson and his stunning works"

Bill Bryson has yet again shown his exceptional talent for the creation of entertaining and instructive non-fiction texts. To those who have already listened or read a Bill Bryson title, you know that his work is unparalleled in its' ability to instruct and entertain using true stories and Bill Bryson's excellent research.

One Summer America 1927, basically tells you what the book is focussed on. This brief period of time in the first half of the 20th century laid the ground work for many and varied events on the world stage. This was the time of the "roaring twenties", the pre-depression period, the creation of many ideas, inventions and dreams. America was reaching a turning point that would help to change the world forever.

This book tells the tales of audacious aircraft pilots, pioneering inventors, sports stars, bucking politicians, dastardly murderers and ploting mobsters. Bill Bryson delves into the depths of matters of this period and analyses the effects of the happenings on the future and how they were effected by the past.

One Summer America 1927 is a stunning example of Bill Bryson's best work and is delightfully humorous and clever whilst being able to instruct and inform.

So listen on, for there is One Summer in America during 1927 that is amazing.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Peter

Papakura, New Zealand

28/09/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Bryson , Great as Usual..."

Bryson researches his books so well and puts them together in a way that make them fascinating to read or listen to. I like listening to Bill Bryson narrate as well. I suspect he could make almost anything interesting. If you've liked any of his previous books you will no doubt enjoy this.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Magnus

20/02/17

Overall

Performance

Story

"Interesting and captivating but too many figures"

A few strong characters that force you stay with the book but way to many minor characters that distracted from the main threads. Impressive research and a recommended read for anyone that likes adventures and hero stories, the real ones

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Andre

10/12/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"As with all his books - just loved it!"

Bill Bryson has a way with words that perfectly captures the moment. As if you were a present observer during the event he relays. This, plus his gift for pointing out the most interesting nuggets of historical events, guarantees an entertainment experience bettered only by a handful of things. I think he may even have invented a genre, intentionally or otherwise.

The audio book format means you can listen to it while driving, gardening, fishing, walking, taking a bath, or any equally unengaging activity that has to be done, but where you can't necessarily stop and read from a book. That means (if you're as distractable as me), that you can actually finish a book before forgetting what happened in the first few chapters before you even get to the end!

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

George

11/09/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"So many things happened in the summer of 1927"

Would you listen to One Summer again? Why?

Yes, I there are just so many details in there that it would be a treasure to go back and re-hear how everything is related.

What does Bill Bryson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

It's like having an amusing conversation with an entertaining uncle.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Eduardo

07/01/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"So interesting!"

This book exceeded my expectations. Lots of wonderful and interesting stories and anecdotes from popular and widely covered public figures as Lindbergh, Capone and Ruth through to stories from characters I had never heard of. Great interweaving of personalities told with great rhythm and sense of humour. I hope a writer like Bill Bryson comes along 100 years from now and writes and narrates as interesting a story about our present times as Bill did about 1927.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Alessandro

Blacktown, Australia

22/03/14

Overall

Performance

Story

"Another great book from Mr. Bryson"

Would you consider the audio edition of One Summer to be better than the print version?

I have not read the printed version, but I always prefer the audio version of any book..as long as the narrator is a good one and Mr. Bryson is an excellent reader.

What was one of the most memorable moments of One Summer?

Too many to mention...but I guess that the one that really sticks in my mind is the lengths the US Government went to stop people from drinking...adding strychnine??

Have you listened to any of Bill Bryson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes and they are all very well written and read, I cannot remember a single one I did not enjoy. He always provides more that you expect.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes as much as was possible.

Any additional comments?

I definitely recommend it as a great and informative listen.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

bill

28/02/14

Overall

Performance

Story

"another great read from Mr Bryson"

What did you love best about One Summer?

with this and 'At Home', the reader goes on a very interesting journey through the past brought to life not by dates and events, but by real life stories told well and very well researched, at least as far as I can tell.once again thank you Mr Bryson, also for narrating it personally.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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